Chuck D, or Carlton Douglas Ridenhour, has his answers for Gene Simmons’s statements on the Legends N Leaders podcast. In the interview, the Israeli-American musician stated how hip-hop music can’t have a place in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. As such, Ridenhour has a response on social media.
Chuck D on Gene Simmons saying Hip-Hop doesn’t belong in Rock & Roll Hall of Fame
In his recent post on X, Chuck D responded to Gene Simmons’s comments on how hip-hop doesn’t belong in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. For the uninformed, the Kiss alum had stated, “It’s not my music. I don’t come from the ghetto. It doesn’t speak my language.” He further added, “And as I said in print many times, hip-hop does not belong in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, nor does opera or symphony orchestras.” The 76-year-old explained, “The fact that, for instance, Iron Maiden is not in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame when they can sell out stadiums.”
Simmons continued, “Grandmaster Flash is… Ice Cube and I had a back and forth — he’s a bright guy, and I respect what he’s done.” The musician added, “He shot back that it’s the ‘spirit’ of rock and roll … I just want to know when Led Zeppelin’s going to be in the Hip-Hop Hall of Fame.”
The father of two also said, “Music has labels because it describes an approach. By and large, rap, hip-hop is a spoken-word art.” Simmons further stated, “Then you put beats in back of it and somebody comes up with a musical phrase, but it’s verbal. There are some melodies, but by and large, it’s a verbal thing.”
Thus, the Public Enemy band leader replied to a post discussing Simmons’s comments. Tweeting about Simmons’ statement and responding to it, Ridenhour wrote on X, “Gene definitely has his opinion and it carries major weight… however it is The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame … not considering it ‘ROCK’ may hold a debatable point but clearly RAP and some other genres of movement are the ‘ROLL’ .” He concluded, “Rock and Roll clearly splintered all over the place in the 1960s and big banged ever since.”
